(Now , this is coming from someone who some folks think has a serious personaility disorder, so take it or leave it for what its worth!)

Back in the late 70s I worked graveyard shift as an orderly in an ER in Boston. We saw lots of "unusual" folks. One of the customers I remember most vividly was a gent who came in with a 2-3" gash on his head from a bar room encounter. Funny, we thought, he seems a little tipsy, but he's trying to be charming -- wants to talk about the Red Sox. 20 minutes later we find him rummaging through a supply drawer stuffing syringes in his pockets. We fix that and put a security guard on him. But he still wants to chat us up about the Red Sox. Well, we're less inclined to talk sports at this point, so he gets mad and abusive -- won't stay in the treatment room, won't lie down, takes a swing at one of us -- but still wants to chat about the Red Sox. After about 2 hours of this little behavioral roller-coaster, we document his refusal to accept treatment and we kick him out. He hails a cab and disappears.

We discover later that this scene was repeated in at least 7 other ERs that night. Not sure he ever got stitched up -- after a certain amount of time has passed nobody will suture a wound like that, and he'd have one ugly scar today as a result.

Anyhow, in our clean utility room we had a few signs, humorous and otherwise. One of them was "YOU CAN'T ARGUE WITH A DRUNK". In my three years there I came to a progressively stronger conclusion that there really wasn't much of a percentage in chatting about the Red Sox with inebriated customers -- that more often than not the discussion went places that weren't worthwhile or that were downright aggravating.

OK, so I'm no model for perfect social behavior, but, as I see a fellow citizen (cringe!) throw out absolutely ignorant, mean-spirited comments on this BBS, completely earning the title of "dink", I am reminded of that sign. You can't argue with a drunk. And I don't think I'll be chatting about sports (or Empegs) with that drunk, either.

How many other BBSes will my drunken fellow citizen visit tonight?

(BTW.... NWMT: I like it!)